The Four Shielder’s arrived at Cascades Montessori still
rousing from their slumber and struggling to orient as to why they were awake
early in the morning on a day off from school. After scraping the ice off the
bus we headed out towards Blanchard Mountain and Lizard Lake.
Circling up at the trailhead we brought our minds towards the
focus of the day, a walking natural history lesson on the way up the trail and
then a test of the Shielder’s skills with a one match fire at the Department of
Natural Resources campground at Lizard Lake. Before heading out we asked the
group if they had any inspirations and went over our three commitments for our
time together: don’t waste anyone’s time, encourage the heart, and be here now.
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| Loggers at loading site with donkey engine and railroad tracks, Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company, possibly in Grays Harbor County, ca. 1930 |
Walking up the logging road we came across a pile of bones.
The group puzzled over them for a little while and after quite a few guesses as
to what they might be, Tim let the group know that it was most likely cow bones
that had either been discarded or butchered on the road. Coming to the quarry
the boys played on the gravel piles and took in the crystal clear views of Mount
Baker and the Twin Sisters range. It’s nice to see that our outings are still
satisfying their playfulness and childlike wonder as they engaged in the simple
pursuits of “digging in the sandbox”.
Reaching the Alternate Incline Trail the Leader of the Day checked in with the
group as we peeled layers, snacked, and hydrated before starting up the climb.
Alternate Incline was the location of an old logging grade in the early 20th
century where a steam-powered
winch more commonly referred to as a “Steam Donkey” was used to raise and lower
logging equipment and drag felled logs out of the woods. If a donkey needed to
be moved it was then attached to a strong anchor point like a log or a tree and
the machine would drag itself overland to the next location.
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| English Camp 5 Donkey crew near Little Mountain and Mount Vernon, Circa 1917. Clark Kinsey photo |
As we sweated our way up the trail our conversation ambled
from Pokémon to Middle and High School happenings and finished with a politics.
As wonderful as it is to mentor younger Explorers, this dialogue nourishes our
BEC staff because it gives us a window into the Shielder’s minds, opinions, and
life experience allowing us to unpack societal and cultural nuances in a safe
space.
Almost to the lake we came across a Washington Trails
Association crew that were in the process of felling a few trees. Although we
did not get to see them toppling the trees as the crew said we needed to be a
safe distance way before felling them, they did show a woodworking tool called
a drawknife. They explained that a drawknife was used to shape and remove large
sections of bark from trees so they could place them along the trail in order
divert water runoff that was eroding sections of the trail.
Making one last stop before Lizard Lake each boy gathered a
bundle of dried Western Hemlock branches for their one match fire challenge.
Just as it was important to unpack the subtle nuances of our culture is was
important to recognize the slight difference between Western Hemlock and
Western Yew needles and bark in our harvesting. Western Hemlock provides a
strong ignition when put to flame while Western Yew puts out poisonous gas when
burned.
Arriving at frozen Lizard Lake the boys bonded by skipping
rocks across the ice and listening
to the unusual sounds. Mentors let the group engage in the activity until
their play deteriorated into the gathering of bigger and bigger rocks and the
risk of someone falling into the lake was inevitable.
Circling back up around the fire ring the boys took out
their tinder bundles and Tim handed them a single match. One-by-one the
Shielders struck their match and ignited their tinder bundle. As the Western
Hemlock started to catch they quickly turned their bundle 180 degrees,
channeling the flames upward, which caught the rest of the bundle and allowed
enough time to ignite the kindling. As mentors we feel confident that if this
group were in an emergency situation they would be able to make fire.
After eating some lunch the Leader of the Day facilitated a decision to spend the rest of our
time exploring the caves under the North Butte of Blanchard Mountain. He set the
stopping point that would give us just enough time to hold a closing circle and
make the trek back to the bus. The boys did a great job of collaborating and
compromising in this moment and showed real maturity. Please ask your Four
Shielder about their steep scramble and exploration of the North Butte’s caves.
Tired and content the group shared their thanks and we ate
our apples while overlooking the lake. Many of the Shielders echoed that they
enjoyed being together out in this wild space. Through just the right amount of
adventure, skill focus, natural history, and play the group felt cohesive and
supportive of one another. This was a concern for the Mentors as we planned
this 2017-18 year and strategized on how to incorporate two new groups into the
Four Shields. We are thankful for this and for time spent with your sons in the
natural world. Thank you families for your support and encouragement for the
work that we are privileged to engage in. We wish you all a wonderful holiday
season and we’ll see your sons again this January for a snow cave outing at Mt.
Baker!
From more pictures please visit the Four Shield’s photo album from the
outing.
